Story: CG Miscalculation

 

The next morning, Nina bolted upright, her sheets twisted around her legs like a shroud. Her heart hammered against her ribs, a frantic bird trapped in a cage of bone. She gasped for air, the oxygen feeling thin and metallic in the morning light of her bedroom. She clutched her head, fingers digging into her scalp. Fragments of the previous night drifted through her mind like shards of a broken mirror-jagged, disconnected, and cutting.

She remembered the lab. She remembered the humming of the machinery and the scent of ozone. She remembered Sae-the brilliant, glasses-wearing version of Shirley-standing beside her, their voices melding into a strange, harmonious frequency.

Then, the blur. A third presence.  Nina's eyes widened. She remembered little fleeting details... There had been three of them. A triumvirate of something... other. But the third face was a smudge of crimson and gold, a memory that dissolved the moment she tried to grip it.

"Who?" she whispered, her voice rasping. "Who was the third?"

She swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood. As she moved toward the mirror, something happened. It wasn't a conscious decision. Her hips gave a small, rhythmic sway, a feline grace that didn't belong to a girl who spent her life hunched over a microscope. 

Nina froze, staring at her reflection. She looked the same-the same timid eyes, the same pale complexion. But as she watched, her lips curled into a slow, sultry smirk. It wasn't her smirk. It was a predatory, playful expression that made her skin prickle.

She slapped her own cheek, the sting bringing her back to center.

"Stop it," she hissed. "Get out of my head."

The smirk lingered for a second longer than it should have before fading into a look of sheer terror.  She dressed in her usual Ashford Academy uniform, but as she fastened the buttons of her blouse, she found herself lingering on the fit. She tugged the fabric tight against her waist, frowning. Usually, she preferred the clothes to hide her form, to act as a barrier between her and the world. Now, a voice in the back of her mind, a bubbly, echoing giggle, suggested that she should leave the top button undone.

"Absolutely not," Nina muttered.

She left the dorm room, her stride unconsciously faster than usual. As she walked through the school gates, she noticed the atmosphere. The air was thick with a specific kind of electricity. Groups of students huddled together, their voices a low drone of speculation. Normally she'd ignore the gossip, but today...

"Did you see the report from the research facility?" a boy whispered as Nina passed.

"I heard she tore through a whole platoon of Sutherlands like they were made of cardboard," a girl replied.

Nina felt a surge of nausea. She knew exactly who they were talking about. She was talking about herself. Or rather, the thing that wore her skin when the sun went down.

As she approached the student council room, she caught the eye of a passing upperclassman. Normally, Nina would have looked at the ground, shrinking into her shoulders to avoid notice. Instead, she found herself tilting her head, locking eyes with him, and offering a small, enigmatic smile.

The boy stopped in his tracks, blinking. He looked confused, then flushed a deep red, stumbling over his own feet as he hurried away. Nina blinked, her hand flying to her mouth. 

"What is happening to me?"

She pushed open the double doors to the council room. The noise hit her instantly. Milly, Lelouch, Suzaku, Rivalz, and Shirley were all gathered around the central table, the remnants of a breakfast spread scattered between them.

"And then," Rivalz was saying, his arms flailing, "The report says she just... vanished! Poof! Like a magic trick! I'm telling you, she's not even human. She's gotta be some kind of holographic projection or a high-tech android from a secret Britannian project that went rogue!"

Milly leaned back in her chair, a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Oh, Rivalz, you have such a vivid imagination. Why go for robots when the truth is so much more scandalous? A mysterious, super-powered beauty who treats the military like her own personal playground? It's practically a romance novel!"

Shirley giggled, though Nina noticed her friend was staring at the table with a focused, distant look-the look of someone calculating a complex equation in her head.

"I don't know," Shirley said, her voice airy but her eyes sharp. "Maybe she's just someone who finally decided to stop following the rules. Who wouldn't want to feel that kind of freedom?"

Nina slid into her seat, trying to remain invisible.

"Morning, Nina!" Milly chirped, her gaze sweeping over her. The president's eyes lingered on Nina's posture, the way she wasn't slouching, the way her chin was held just a fraction higher than usual. "You look... refreshed. Did you have a good night's sleep?"

"I... yes. Fine. Everything is fine," Nina stammered, the stutter returning, though it felt forced now, like a costume she was trying to put back on.

Lelouch, who had been silent, resting his chin on his hand, shifted his gaze toward Nina. His violet eyes were narrow, analytical. He didn't say anything immediately, but the way he looked at her made Nina feel as though he were reading the footnotes of her soul.

"The discussion was just turning to the 'Sakura' phenomenon," Lelouch said, his voice smooth and modulated. "Rivalz believes she is a machine. Milly believes she is a protagonist in a bodice-ripper. I, however, find the tactical data more compelling."

"Tactical data?" Rivalz groaned. "Lelouch, the girl is skipping through gunfire! What's the 'tactical' part of that?"

"The efficiency," Lelouch replied. "She doesn't just dodge; she redirects. Her movements are an optimization of kinetic energy. She isn't fighting the soldiers; rather, she's playing with them. It suggests a level of confidence that borders on the pathological. She doesn't fear the outcome because to her, it's all just a game."

Suzaku, who had been leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, finally spoke.

"It's more than just confidence," Suzaku said, his voice earnest. "I've seen the footage from the facility. The way she moves... it's not trained. It's intuitive, pure instinct. If you train for years in the military, you develop habits. You have a 'style' based on your instructors. But her? The way she moves shouldn't be possible. It's almost as if she's in tune with the environment in a way that shouldn't be possible for a human."

"So, what are you saying, Suzaku?" Milly asked, leaning in. "That she's a goddess?"

Suzaku shook his head. "No. But she's dangerous. Not because she's malicious - she seems almost too cheerful - but because she's an unknown variable. In a war, an unknown variable is the most dangerous thing you can encounter."

Nina felt a cold sweat break out on her neck. <i>Unknown variable.</i> That was an understatement.

"I wonder what she actually wants," Shirley mused, her voice drifting. "She doesn't seem to be following any political agenda. She's not claiming territory or demanding releases for prisoners. She's just... causing mayhem."

"Maybe she's just bored!" Rivalz suggested. "I mean, if I could throw a car, I'd probably spend my weekends throwing cars at things I didn't like."

"The question isn't why she does it, but who she is," Lelouch intervened. "The news reports mention her speaking the old language fluently. Not just basic phrases, but a dialect that hasn't been common for decades. To possess that kind of linguistic heritage, combined with those physical abilities... it suggests someone who has been meticulously crafted or someone who has undergone a fundamental transformation."

Nina gripped the edge of the table. The word 'transformation' echoed in her head.

"Do you think she's connected to Zero?" Milly asked.

"Possible," Lelouch said, though he sounded skeptical. "But Zero is a strategist. He uses people as pieces on a board. Sakura is a wildfire. You don't 'use' a wildfire; you just hope it doesn't burn your own house down while you're directing it toward the enemy. If Zero has an alliance with her, it's a fragile one based on mutual convenience, not command."

"I just think she's cute," Rivalz added, leaning back. "I mean, did you see the way she posed for the camera? That's a girl who knows she's got the looks. I'd definitely let her crash my car if it meant she'd talk to me."

"You're hopeless, Rivalz," Shirley giggled.

Nina watched Shirley. The way her friend was smiling was a bit too wide, a bit too knowing. For a moment, Nina saw a flash of something in Shirley's eyes-a spark of intellectual hunger. 

'Sae,' Nina thought. 'She's in there right now.'

The realization sent a jolt through her. She wasn't alone. She was part of a secret club of monsters.

"Nina, you've been very quiet," Lelouch said suddenly.

Nina jumped, nearly knocking over her water glass. "I... I just... I think the news is exaggerating! I mean, how could one girl really be that strong? It's probably just... clever editing! Yes, camera tricks!"

Lelouch's eyebrow arched. He leaned forward, his gaze intensifying.

"Camera tricks that disable a secure military facility?"

"Maybe the security was just bad!" Nina retorted, her voice rising. 

The room went silent. Everyone stared at her. Nina's heart skipped. She had just spoken with a level of assertiveness that was entirely foreign to her. She hadn't stuttered. She hadn't looked away. She had challenged Lelouch directly.

"Well," Milly said, a slow smile spreading across her face. "Who knew Nina had a bit of a temper? I like this new energy!"

Nina sank back into her chair, her face flaming. "I... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to... I just..."

"Don't apologize," Lelouch said, his voice returning to its usual cool tone. "It's refreshing to see you express an opinion with such... conviction."

He didn't look away. He was studying her, searching for the crack in the armor. Nina felt a sudden, irrational urge to lean across the table and wink at him. The thought was so absurd, so profoundly 'not-Nina', that she felt a wave of vertigo.

'Get out!' she screamed internally. 'Leave me alone!'

The giggle returned, warmer and more insistent this time. 'Why are you fighting it, sweetie? Look at them. They're all so boring. Don't you want to stir things up?'

"I have to go to the library," Nina blurted out, standing up so quickly her chair screeched against the floor.

"The library? Now?" Rivalz asked. "The meeting isn't even over!"

"I... I forgot a book! A very important book! Bye!"

She bolted from the room, the sounds of their confused chatter fading behind her. She didn't stop running until she reached the secluded corridor leading to the science wing. She leaned against the cold stone wall, gasping for breath.

"Three," she whispered. "There were three of us."

She closed her eyes, trying to force the memory of the third person to surface. She remembered the heat. A shimmering, golden warmth. The smell of expensive perfume and scorched metal. A voice that sounded like silk wrapped around a blade.

'Kiyomi,' a voice whispered in the back of her mind.

Nina's eyes snapped open. Where had that name come from? She didn't know a Kiyomi. But the name felt right. It felt like a piece of a puzzle clicking into place.

As she stood there, she caught her reflection in a trophy case. She wasn't smirking anymore, but she noticed the way she was standing. One leg was crossed over the other, her weight shifted to one hip in a pose that was unconsciously provocative. She looked down at her hands. They were shaking, but not with fear. It was an anticipation. A hunger.

"I'm being corrupted," she whispered.

She thought about the way she had looked at the boy in the hallway. The way she had spoken to Lelouch. The boundaries she had spent years building-the walls of propriety, the shields of shyness, the armor of her own bigotry-were being eroded. Not by force, but by a slow, sweet tide of confidence.

And the most terrifying part was that she didn't entirely hate it. She spent the next hour in the library, hiding behind a stack of textbooks on nuclear physics, but she couldn't concentrate. Every time she read a sentence, her mind drifted to the image of Sakura. She imagined the feeling of the wind against her skin as she leaped over a building. She imagined the look of absolute terror on a soldier's face just before she knocked him unconscious.

She felt a strange duality. She was Nina Einstein, the terrified genius who feared the world. And she was Sakura, the girl who owned the world.

The transition wasn't just a change of body; it was a change of soul. Sakura didn't just have strength; she had a total absence of shame. She lived for the moment, for the sensation, for the thrill of the game.  Nina shuddered. Shame was her only constant. Shame kept her safe. Shame kept her in her place.

'But is 'your place' really where you want to be?* the inner voice teased. *Hiding in a library? Being the 'quiet girl' that everyone ignores?'

"I'm not ignored," Nina whispered. "I'm respected for my mind."

*Respect is just a polite word for distance,* Sakura replied. *Love is different. Desire is different. Do you want them to respect your mind, Nina? Or do you want them to want you?*

Nina slammed the book shut. 

"Shut up! Just shut up!"

A few students nearby glared at her. Nina froze, her instinct to apologize and shrink away kicking in. But as she looked at them, she didn't feel the usual surge of anxiety. Instead, she felt a flash of irritation. 

'Who do they think they are, looking at me like that?'

She didn't apologize. Instead, she gave them a sharp, dismissive look and turned her back on them, her chin lifted. The students blinked, surprised by the sudden shift in her demeanor. They whispered among themselves, glancing at her with a mixture of confusion and curiosity. Nina walked away, her heart racing. She was changing. Even when she was "Nina," the edges of her personality were fraying. The confidence of the other self was leaking through the cracks.